Huntington is now a mentor site for law enforcement officers and first responders from across the United States who are looking to launch or expand drug diversion programs like those already in place in Cabell County, including the Quick Response Team. “There will be people coming from all across the country, actually coming here to go out with the team and see what we’re doing firsthand,” said Connie Priddy, program coordinator for the Huntington QRT.
- PUB DATE: 1/27/2020 12:00:00 AM - SOURCE: West Virginia MetroNews

VIDEOS: Broken windows, busted garage doors, and plumes of smoke could be seen from a northwest Houston neighborhood rattled by a large building explosion. According to area residents, the explosion happened around 4:20 a.m. Friday at Watson Valve Services, which is about half a mile away from their homes on Rockcrest road and Stanford Court.
- PUB DATE: 1/24/2020 12:00:00 AM - SOURCE: Click2Houston

An official with the Detroit Fire Department said 13 firefighters are facing department charges for a photo that surfaced on New Year's Day that featured them posing in front of a burning house in Detroit. The Detroit Fire Department official was not authorized to go on the record about the 13 firefighters but told FOX 2 they are charged with exhibiting ignorance of the rules or orders.
- PUB DATE: 1/24/2020 12:00:00 AM - SOURCE: WJBK-TV FOX 2 Detroit

The Cleveland Fire Department is taking steps to better protect your neighborhood while possibly saving you money, improving how it responds to suspicious fires. "It's very unusual for somebody to have more than one fire in their life," said Chief Chris Posante, Cleveland Fire Investigation Unit. However, in Cleveland, serial arsonists are keeping the city’s recently revamped investigation unit busy.
- PUB DATE: 1/24/2020 12:00:00 AM - SOURCE: WEWS-TV ABC 5 Cleveland

Mayor Bill de Blasio will meet with health officials on Friday to discuss the city’s response to any potential cases of the deadly coronavirus, which has shut down parts of China and led to fears of an epidemic. The mayor will meet with members from the Department of Health, NYC Emergency Management, the FDNY and the NYPD on Friday morning to talk about how the city will respond if the virus makes its way to the city.
- PUB DATE: 1/24/2020 12:00:00 AM - SOURCE: WINS 1010 AM

Just think that over a hundred years ago there was no cellphones, no 911 emergency system, no fire department as we know it today! If your home caught on fire, you had to rely on whoever happened to be nearby to help you extinguish the fire, then hopefully you were within reach of a pump, or a water resource.
- PUB DATE: 1/24/2020 12:00:00 AM - SOURCE: Record-Courier

Three American firefighters died in a water tanker plane crash Thursday while battling wildfires in Australia, New South Wales Premier Gladys Berejiklian confirmed. Rural Fire Service officials said they had located the plane, a C-130 Hercules, that crashed in the Snowy Monaro region of New South Wales state.
- PUB DATE: 1/23/2020 12:00:00 AM - SOURCE: FOX News

VIDEO: A group of firefighters have been forced out of their station due to health concerns. According to the president of the Dearborn Firefighters Union, fire station five is a moldy mess. Instead of sleeping overnight and waking up if there's a call— firefighters have been staying in trucks. They usually stay at fire station five in Dearborn, but 7 Action News has been told what started as a flooding problem led to mold.
- PUB DATE: 1/23/2020 12:00:00 AM - SOURCE: WXYZ-TV ABC 7 Detroit

After 67 years, a Charlotte Volunteer Fire Department could lose it’s funding from Mecklenburg County. That was a recommendation from the county’s Land Use and Environmental Services Agency at last week’s Board of County Commissioner’s policy meeting. They say these community fire departments are expensive to run and although no official decision has been made, the Cook’s Fire Department says they will do whatever they can to keep operating.
- PUB DATE: 1/23/2020 12:00:00 AM - SOURCE: WBTV CBS 3 Charlotte

VIDEO: A Phoenix fire engine was traveling approximately 29 mph over the speed limit at the time of a deadly crash in April 2019, according to the police investigation released Wednesday. The report, released more than nine months after the crash, also said the other vehicle's driver, Kenneth "Chase" Collins, 20, did not possess a valid driver's license and had marijuana in his system.
- PUB DATE: 1/23/2020 12:00:00 AM - SOURCE: KNXV-TV ABC 15 Phoenix

VIDEO: Maine lawmakers are considering a bill that would make changes to the state's "Dig Safe" law in response to last year's deadly explosion in Farmington. The bill would add liquefied propane gas lines to the law. "Dig Safe" laws prohibit digging around certain underground utility lines. In Maine, LP lines are currently not on the prohibited list, bill sponsor Rep.
- PUB DATE: 1/23/2020 12:00:00 AM - SOURCE: WMTW-TV ABC 8 Poland Spring

VIDEO: A statewide minimum wage increase that went into effect this year never came for Raton firefighters after city officials said they were unaware that the new law overruled the contract they had with the firefighters union. Now state unions are calling for appropriate raises. “It's an honor for them to serve, but at the same time—just compensate them correctly, that's all we're asking,” said Robert Sanchez, president of the New Mexico Professional Fire Fighters Association.
- PUB DATE: 1/22/2020 12:00:00 AM - SOURCE: KOB-TV NBC 4 Albuquerque

The county’s Emergency Services Department Board unanimously motioned to end its contracts with volunteer fire departments that protect a large chunk of El Paso County Tuesday night, leaving many firefighters worried for their futures. Six El Paso area fire departments say they were given a 90-day notice that the county is looking at terminating their contracts and with no plan in place that they’re aware of, the firefighters worry what this means for the communities they serve.
- PUB DATE: 1/22/2020 12:00:00 AM - SOURCE: KTSM-TV NBC 9 El Paso

A wildland firefighter badly burned in the 2015 Twisp River blaze has reached a $5 million settlement with two utility companies that he had sued for allegedly failing to keep branches away from a power line that state officials concluded caused the ignition. The civil suit that resulted in the settlement was filed by Daniel Lyon Jr.
- PUB DATE: 1/22/2020 12:00:00 AM - SOURCE: Seattle Times - Metered Site

VIDEO: The state fire marshal on Tuesday put all Massachusetts fire chiefs on alert that his office has already received reports of two instances in which teens trying to recreate a viral video have caused electrical system damage or fire. Fire Marshal Peter Ostroskey said a video that’s gained attention on the TikTok app has encouraged teens to partially insert the plug part of a phone charger into a wall outlet and then slide a penny down the wall to make contact with the two exposed prongs.
- PUB DATE: 1/22/2020 12:00:00 AM - SOURCE: WFXT-TV FOX 25 Boston

VIDEO: The Plover Fire Department recently started using navigation compass devices in their masks. It not only helps crews combat structure fires but it also helps them save lives. "We've had two actual structure fires within the last week," said Plover Fire Dept. Captain Ethan Meddaugh. "One in the village of Plover and one in the village of Whiting.
- PUB DATE: 1/22/2020 12:00:00 AM - SOURCE: WAOW-TV ABC 9

VIDEO: Hundreds of firefighters battled a raging and fast-moving fire that spread through a row of town-homes on Staten Island on Monday. The fire was reported shortly after 3 p.m. on Rensselaer Avenue, and within 30 minutes, a fifth alarm had been sounded as the flames quickly spread. Officials say 18 firefighters and one civilian suffered injuries in the fire, but all the injuries were believed to be minor.
- PUB DATE: 1/21/2020 12:00:00 AM - SOURCE: WABC-TV ABC 7 New York

La Verne Fire Station No. 3 at 5100 Esperanza Drive, which serves neighborhoods in the area, will be closed for about six weeks until the city can hire more firefighters, Mayor Don Kendrick said Monday, Jan. 20. La Verne Firefighters’ Association, Local 3624, posted information about the closure Friday on social media.
- PUB DATE: 1/21/2020 12:00:00 AM - SOURCE: Inland Valley Daily Bulletin - Metered Site

VIDEO: It’s a startling statistic - since 2015, more firefighters and police officers are dying by suicide than in the line of duty, according to a report. In January, nearly 1,000 Fort Worth firefighters will take a course to learn to spot the signs of someone at risk for suicide. According to a report published in 2017 by the Ruderman Family Foundation, almost 250 firefighters and police officers died by suicide in 2016 across the United States, as compared to just over 200 that died in the line of duty.
- PUB DATE: 1/21/2020 12:00:00 AM - SOURCE: KXAS-TV NBC 5 Dallas-Fort Worth

Two decades ago, a machine shed fire in rural Plymouth County might have taken one, maybe two, fire departments to put out the flames. But in 2019, it took five just to get enough manpower and water to put out the fire. No single department had enough available volunteers or resources. "The days where the butcher, the baker, and the horseshoe maker ran down the street when the fire whistle blew in town, that doesn't happen anymore," Le Mars Fire Chief David Schipper said.
- PUB DATE: 1/21/2020 12:00:00 AM - SOURCE: Des Moines Register